COREX is a privately owned limited company providing specialist services, principally in the analysis of geological samples, to the oil and gas industry. COREX was established in the mid 1970's and over the last 35 years has become established as one of the world's leading Core Analysis facilities providing services to the majority of the world's major oil companies.

COREX is committed to providing a top quality service, using state of the art equipment, techniques and personnel for a range of services tailored to the requirements of the client. Our mission statement reflects the core values of the company:

COREX's 35 years of experience, contribution and innovation across the industry are definitely seen as one of our major keys to success. COREX have analysed millions of samples and are in the leading market position to give advice and recommendations to assist with client problems. We have maintained this position through our commitment for achieving excellence and our ability to offer world leading services and an unrivalled experience portfolio to our clients. Many forward thinking companies and indeed some of the largest exploration companies in the world are now using COREX for their Formation Damage, Core Services, Reservoir Geology, PVT, NMR and EOR requirements.

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Employing over 70 full-time staff, the Aberdeen laboratories act as the focal point for the COREX Group. The laboratories are within easy reach of Aberdeen Airport (2 minutes away) and Aberdeen city centre. The laboratory handles thousands of feet of core per year from the North Sea and around the world and ensures that COREX has a presence as a leading service company in the industry. This is highlighted by the thousands of visitors to the laboratory each year. The facility consists of 3 large industrial units that have been customised over the past 35 years to meet the business requirements associated with the four main services we offer from the Aberdeen base: Core Analysis, Formation Damage, Reservoir Geology and EOR.

Our North African regional laboratory based in Cairo employs over 50 full-time staff. The highly experienced teams work to ensure that testing is conducted to the highest standard. COREX services have been present in Cairo for over 25 years offering Core Analysis, Pressure-Volume Temperature (PVT) and Reservoir Geology services and in 2010; the laboratories were relocated to new, larger, custom built facilities to meet the continued demand. The Egypt laboratory is certified by The British Standards Institution (BSI) to Quality Management System ISO 9001:2008 standard. This gives assurance to the customer that the data provided is measured on maintained and calibrated equipment, according to documented procedures by trained personnel.

COREX Libya was set up in 2006 to address local demand for Routine Core Analysis services. As well as offering Routine Core Analysis, as a branch of COREX UK the laboratories can also offer additional COREX services including Special Core Analysis (SCAL), PVT, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Reservoir Geology.

In 2009, COREX formed a joint venture company with Al Mansoori Specialized Engineering based in the United Arab Emirates. Due to the current market conditions in the oil and gas industry, unfortunately the joint venture has since been amicably dissolved but this does not deter COREX from remaining active and continuing to support and offer services across the UAE region.

COREX continue our working relationship with Al Mansoori Specialized Engineering who will act as COREX exclusive agent within the UAE market.

In 2016, COREX was acquired by Premier Oilfield Laboratories, LLC (POL). POL will contribute industry leading competency to the combined company through high-resolution reservoir characterisation and completion optimisation for unconventional reservoirs. The acquisition of COREX enables POL to globalise the companies’ customer base and expand in international territories, products and services.

COREX has a long tradition of providing quality laboratory testing in conventional reservoirs and POL’s enhanced workflows ranging from single well to field developments provide COREX the ability to offer a more comprehensive solution worldwide.

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COREX is continually looking to improve our Corporate Social Responsibility effort and as a company are committed to behaving ethically, contributing to economic development and improving the quality of life of our workforce as well as of the local community and society.

To that end COREX intends our company activities will be conducted in such a way as to prevent - so far as is reasonable - practicable damage to the environment. We are committed to helping the environment reduce, recycle and manage waste safely and efficiently through shredding, commercial recycling and waste collection and management of hazardous waste.

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COREX is committed to providing the highest quality products and services in a safe and environmentally responsible manner throughout our worldwide operations.

COREX strive for continual improvement in our QHSE performance. By having QHSE integral with our business operations, we have developed a strong culture of awareness and attention to detail that has resulted in exceptional QHSE performance. Our safety performance track record and the reliability of our services reflect the true value of QHSE.

Formation Damage can be defined as, "a reduction in permeability around a wellbore, which is the consequence of drilling, completion, injection, attempted stimulation or production of that well."

Formation Damage can cause significant decreases in well productivity and worldwide yearly lost production due to Formation Damage is equivalent to billions of dollars in lost revenue. Identification and reduction of Formation Damage problems can lead to immediate returns in the form of increased production rates and extension of the life of any field.

To clearly identify favourable non-damaging fluid candidates, remedial treatments and / or incorporate mechanisms or design operations to improve results for field use the permeability results, cryogenic SEM analysis and dry SEM analysis are required. If the above treatment fluid applications are considered based solely on permeability results then this may carry an associated risk because of fines migration and / or other flow reducing barriers. If drilling and/ or completion options are considered for any one sample type based on performing only single SEM analysis then this may carry an associated risk. However, if both dry and cryogenic SEM analysis is performed there would be less associated risk.

CT scanning is commonly used in core analysis to examine full-diameter core, slabbed core, and core samples, to look for bedding features, fractures, cements, and heterogeneities. The resolution of the medical (and similar) scanners used is sufficient to show these coarse features but can generally not show individual grains, pores, micro-fractures, voids, and fine features. Micro-CT scanning utilises a different class of scanner that can show a significantly-greater level of detail; dependent upon sample size scanned features significantly smaller than 1µm in size can be revealed.

COREX have developed methods to study the damaging effects bacteria can produce in hydrocarbon formations.

A major problem when considering drilling / production operations is whether the chemicals used will cause damage in the reservoir. A growing area of concern is the formation damage mechanisms produced by various types of bacteria, such as reservoir souring as a result of sulphate reducing bacteria activity.

COREX has developed techniques to study the origin of the bacteria, whether they are introduced during your drilling operations, sea-water injection or are indigenous to your reservoir.

Drilling into HPHT reservoirs? It is essential to find the correct completion to limit formation damage.

COREX's HPHT facilities reflect the increased requirement to screen chemicals, hardware and procedures under full reservoir conditions for both producer and injector wells. Permeability measurements taken throughout testing, give an indication of damage/stimulation mechanisms resulting from each stage of a completion. In conjunction with permeability measurements, COREX's innovative post-test petrological analysis reveals all solid and fluid damaging mechanisms within a tested sample.

Formation Damage associated with injection/disposal water wells should be minimised in order to achieve maximum possible injectivity. Formation Damage problems associated with injection/disposal can be very different to those associated with production. COREX recommends and conducts reservoir conditions simulations of injection fluids and procedures in order to measure and observe damaging mechanisms.

COREX employs corrosion free testing apparatus in order to determine injection water quality in relation to particular rock types or reservoir.

In the selection of drilling and completion fluids and procedures basic return permeabilities are routinely used. A basic test involves a permeability measurement followed by test fluid application and a final "return" permeability.

As well as performing basic return permeability tests COREX has had a great deal of experience in interpreting the data produced, which has led to the development of more pertinent tests.

COREX return permeability tests are conducted at reservoir conditions. There is a permeability base case and a return permeability but the COREX test involves a full simulation of all drilling/clean-up/completion operations and a simulated drawdown or return to production.

To compliment the laboratory testing, and to further explain the formation damage mechanisms happening with in the core plugs, it is vital that a full suite of geological analysis in undertaken to fully comprehend the various formation damage mechanism(s) that are taking place and influencing permeability results.

Sand production is the migration of fines or formation sands due to the flow of fluids through the reservoir. The migration is usually unwanted as it can reduce productivity in the well; therefore testing prior to production can identify the likelihood of sand production before it becomes an issue.

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Core Analysis quality starts with correct wellsite handling. It is vital that the personnel handling the core at the wellsite be fully trained and aware of the need for careful attention to be given to the orientation, marking and preservation of the core.

Proper packing will ensure cores arrive at the core analysis laboratory in the best condition and without jeopardising the core integrity. Any delay in sampling of the cores can result in alteration of the fluid distribution within the cores thus impacting subsequent analyses.

COREX's Routine Core Analysis/Conventional Core Analysis (RCA, CCA) combines bulk core handling and processing, with statistically targeted point analysis, aimed at the quantification of a series of key petrophysical parameters. There is an emphasis on rapid turnaround to assist the client in the initial phase of formation evaluation and in the preservation of the rock material for future and complementary examination.

COREX are committed to ensuring that we meet both industry standards and the requirements of our clients. Both our main laboratories in the UK and Egypt are certified by The British Standards Institution (BSI) to Quality Management System ISO 9001:2008 standard. This gives assurance to the customer that the data we provide is measured on maintained and calibrated equipment, according to documented procedures by trained personnel. All other laboratories are working towards the same standard and are in the process of obtaining certification.

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There are several definitions for activities. In the most accepted definition EOR refers to the process of producing hydrocarbons by methods other than the conventional use of reservoir energy and reservoir repressurizing schemes with gas or water. IOR, Improved Oil Recovery covers a wider range of activity and refers to any processes that promote reservoir performance. On the average, conventional production methods will produce from a reservoir about 30% of the initial oil in place. The remaining oil, nearly 70% of the initial resource, is a large and attractive target for Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) and Improved Oil Recovery (IOR)activities.

COREX's Reservoir Geology Group operates globally offering a complete range of geological, sedimentological, paleontological and consultancy services. We provide a fully integrated analysis of core or surface samples, both on siliciclastic and carbonate rocks with a view to evaluating the hydrocarbon potential of the chosen rock samples.

Mapping capabilities encompass the entire process from fieldwork and data capture to final map production. Mapping results can be presented in printed form or as thematic digital datasets that may be visualized as three-dimensional block models.

COREX's highly experience sedimentologists are able to provide detailed sedimentological core descriptions, in house or at client's premises. The studies are preformed at a scale of 1:50, or as required by the Client, with the core descriptions being drafted using industry standard Winlog software. More detailed drafting techniques and illustration are also added using ACDSee Canvas and Adobe Illustrator software. If the Client requires, COREX are able to have the core log re-drafted or electronically re-scaled to a 1:200 scale and presented in a well summary sheet alongside wireline and CCA data."

Goniometric fracture / paleoenvironmental studies are mostly done on unoriented (unscribed) cores. A relative orientation may be given by identifying some features, for example distinct fracture or bedding planes, or erosional surfaces.

To process orientated cores, an FMI/S log for the relevant sections is needed and should be supplied by the client. With smaller core sections these services may alternatively be handled by wrapping acetate sheets around the core, scanning and subsequently processing the data by Canvas or Adobe Illustrator software. With smaller core sections this method turns out to be quicker (no set up time), considerably cheaper and just as an effective option for our clients.

To determine the quantity and mineralogy of rock samples, COREX offer x-ray diffraction (XRD) powder analysis. XRD analysis data are provided in form of a Whole Rock Mineral Analysis and of the Clay Fraction <2micron. XRD Analysis is a mandatory technique to the petroleum industry in order to obtain reliable semi-quantitative data to highlight various aspects vital to reservoir assessment.

COREX's Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis provides valuable and highly detailed information on clay and cement distribution, pore geometries and on the microstratigraphy of the mineralogical phases. The SEM is further equipped with a backscatter facility which enables recognition of different mineral phases.

Along with SEM analysis, COREX can provide Energy Dispersive Analysis of X-rays (EDAX) facility, which provides a useful tool for mineral identification and semi-quantitative chemical analysis.

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COREX's Pressure-Volume-Temperature laboratory offers a comprehensive PVT program for all your reservoir fluid property requirements. Equipped with the latest equipment, our PVT laboratory can provide a complete picture of any hydrocarbon sample. This data is essential for the economics and feasibility of any hydrocarbon reservoir.

Our experienced and specially trained staff can provide you accurate PVT analysis, which is vital for precisely calculating the reserves and also for evaluating the value of the reserve. Good PVT data ensures the reservoir is produced and managed in a controlled way, ultimately leading to maximum recovery.

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Investment in developing and enhancing their skills has become key for continual profitability and to keep up-to-date with the advances in technology.

COREX offers bespoke training courses in the areas of Core Analysis, Formation Damage Analysis and NMR conducted by our experienced instructors. Our courses are based on a theory and/or practical approach designed to provide the skills and knowledge to raise your people's abilities.

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Please forward your CV and quote the reference number of the position you are applying for by e-mail to careers@corex.co.uk or in writing to COREX (UK) Ltd, Units B1-B3, Airport Industrial Park, Howe Moss Drive, Dyce, Aberdeen, AB21 0GL marked for the attention of Diane Keith.

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Welcome to COREX's Technical Publication home page featuring a collection of technical papers written by our experienced staff in an array of prestigious publications and journals. At COREX, we aim to actively encourage our personnel to write technical publications and share our knowledge, ideas and experience with the industry.